Tap-splitting machine



Patented New. 4,

entran stars WALTER. J'. RANCOURT, 0F BOS'ILOQN',v MASSACHUSETTS.

TAP-SIELITTING MACHINE.

i Application and may 7, 1923. serial no. causa.

To all whom it may cof/wem.'

Be it known that I, lVAL'rn-R J. RANCOURT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improveimnts in T :tp-Splitting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a machine for splitting a tap for boots and shoes a portion of its length from the rear end thereof.

Taps which are made of'eomposition or rubber` are in many instances split from the rear end thereof for a portion of their length in order that tape may be inserted therebetween 4to more firmly hold the tacks or nails by which the said taps are fastened to the sole of a boot or shoe.

The object of this invention, therefore, is to speedily and accurately split the taps of boots or shoes for a from the rear end t ereof. The invention consists in .the combination and arrangements of parts' set forth in the following 25, specification and particularly pointed out in t e claimsA thereof, whereby the object hereinbefore set forth may be attained.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure l is a front elevation of a machine embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same as viewed from the right of Fig. 1, illustrating a tap in position to be split.

Fig. 3 i s a detail sectional plan taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2, illustrating a portion of the means whereby the feed rolls are adjusted toward or away from each other.

Like numerals refer to like .parts throughout the several views of the drawin s.

ln the drawings, 5 is the frame of the ma,-A chine terminating at its upper end in a U shaped head 6 upon which is rotatably mounted the main driving shaft 7 which is rotated by any suitable mechanism or power. A rotary cutter 8 is fastened` to the shaft 7 and is rotated thereb A pair of spreader plates 9 are provide adjacent to opposite faces respectively of the Vcutter 8 and are fastened at their. upper ends to the two legs 10 and 11 ofthe head 6. These spreader plates terminate at their lower edges in a ycurved portion 12 concentric with the cutter' 8 and a straight portion 13. The front edge 14 of each o the spreader plates has a proas iection 15 thereon which projects between Iportion of their. length.

the split portions of the tap in order to yspreag them apart after the tap has been split the cutter 8.

Thetap is guided to the cutter by a. pair of guide plates 16 and 17. The guide plate 16 has a flange 16 constituting an upper guiding edge and is fastened to a feed roller bearingvframe 18 by screws 19, see Fig, 1,

and the angle iron guide plate 1-7 is fastened to the guide plate 16.

The tap is fed to the cutter by a series of pairs of feed rolls 20, 21, 22 and 23, said rolls being provided with prongs 20. One feed roll :of each pair is rotatably mounted at its upper end upon the feed roller frame 18 and the other feed roll of eachpair is ro-v tatably mounted at its upper end upon a frame 24. The feed roll frames 18 and 24 are approximately alike, each consisting of a top plate 25 and end plates 26 and 27. The end plates 26 and 27 are fastenedt their lower ends by screws. 28 and 29 to cross-y heads 30 and 31. These crossheads are connected together by pins 32 whichare each provided at their opposite ends respectively with a head 33 and a washer 34, the latter being held upon the pin 32 by a split pin 35. Springs 36 are interposed between the head 33 and the crosshead 31 and between the washer 34 and the crosshead 30, these springs tending to' press the -crossheads 30 and' 31 toward each other, while the same may be adjusted apart by means of wedges 37 and 38 which are mounted upon screws 39 and 40 having screw-threaded engagement with the lower ends respectively of the end portions 26 and 2'7 of the frames 18 and 24. The screws 39 .and 40 have screw-threaded engagement withthe end portions 26 and 27 of the frames 18 an'd 24 so that by rotating the screws 39and 40 in the proper direction, the crossheads 30 and 31 and the roll frames 18 and 24 which are fastened thereto may be moved toward and away from each other, together with the pairs o rolls 20, 21,

22 and 23 'which are rotatablymounted as hereinbefore vset forth, at the upper ends upon the frames 18 and 24.

The feed rolls 20, 21, 22 and 23 are provided with shafts 41, 42, 43 and 44 respec tively'which extend downwardly therefrom and are rotatably mounted in the. crossheads 30 and 31. vThese shafts are rotated b bevel gears 45, 46, 47 and 48 and whic mesh into the bevel gears 49, 50,` 51 and `pair of parallel shafts 53 and 54: rotatably The last-named gearsare fastened to a' mounted at their opposite' ends in a, U-

shaped frame 55 which is fastened by a bracket 56 to the main frame 5.

.The shafts 53 and 54 have bevel gears 57 and 58 fast thereto andv meshing into gears 59 and 60 respectively which are fast' to a shaft 61 rotatably mounted in a portion of the frame 55 and having a rotary motion imparted thereto by` a pulley 62 which is 22 and 23 and that the cutting edge of the cutter 8 'projects between the upper ends of the feed rolls 20, theobject ofthis construction lbeing that the upper' end of the tap, or that end"`f"the tap which is t be split by the cutter, shall be accurately positioned rel-` atively to Athe cutting edge of the cutter shaft, so that when the cutting work commenes and while the tap is being fed to the cutter by the rolls 20, 'it will split-thetap on 'a' predetermined plane between the lateral faces thereof, and having thus started the splitting of the tap in the proper plane, rela- 'tively tothe lateral faces thereof, the spread-v loA er plates' 9'and the rolls '21,. 22 and 23 will j-continue'to present and'position-thetap relatively to the cutter in the proper location. It will be 4understood that the prongs 20 on the peripheries of the feed rollsserve the purpose of accurately and positively feeding.

the tap to the cutter. Y

The general operation of the mechanism hereinbefore speciiicallydescribedis as followsz-A-tap 69, Fig. 2, is'placed against the inner face of the guide plate 16 with-a .j straight rear edge of the tap bearing against the under side of the flan e-16 on the guide plate 16. The other en of theta bears againstthe upper'` edgeof the gui e plate 17. The operator' then pushes the tap. for- Wardly between the pair of rolls 20, whereupon it is seized by the prongs 20 on said rolls and fed forwardly into engagement till) with the cutter 8. The tap.i is fed by the rolls 20 betweenthe pair of rolls 21v which seize `Ythe tapand feed-it forward between the rolls 22, while the rolls 22 feed the tap forj ward between the rolls 23, and the rolls 23 feed the tapvout of the machine. p

While the tap is being fed, as hereinbefore described, the cutter splits the same from the rear end thereof downwardly to the broken line A and the projections 15 on the front edges of the spreader platesv 9 enter between the split portions of the tap and further movement forward of the tap by the feed rolls causes the'split .portions Vto be spread apart by the spreader plates.

I claim:

1. A tap splitting machine having, in combination, a rotary cutter, a series of pairs of f eed rolls adapted to feed a tap to said cutter7 the axes of said feed rolls lying in two parallel planes extending transversely of the axis of said cutter and upon opposite sides respectively of said cutterfthe upper' ends of one pair of feed rolls extending toward the cutter beyond the upperl ends of the other pairs of feed rolls, said cutter projecting between said extended upper ends, whereby the opposite faces of said tap may be positionedA laterally relatively to the cutter. Y

2. A tap splitting machine having, in combination, a rotary cutter, a series ofppairs of feedrolls adapted to feed a tap to said cnt ter, the axes of said rolls lying in two par` allel planes extending transversely of the axis of said cutter and upon opposite sides respectively of said cutter the ends of one pair of feed rolls'extending toward the cut- .ter, beyond the ends of the 'other pairs of feed rolls, said cutter4 projecting between said extended ends, whereby the'opposite faces of said tap may be positioned laterally relatively to the cutter v 3. A tap splitting machine having, in com! l bination, a rotary cutter, a series of pairs of feed rolls adapted to feed a tap to said cutter and a pair of stationaryl spreader plates located upon opposite sides of .said

cutter and'adaptedto spread the-portions of said tap which are split bysaid'cutter awayv 'Y from eachl other.

4. A tap splitting machine having, incom- 'ij A bination, a rotary cutter, the axis of which is horizontal, a series of pairs of vertical feed rolls adapted toffeed altap' to said cutter and a pair of guide plates adapted to '1 bination, a rotary cutter, akseries of pairs of feed rolls adapted to feed a tap to said cutter, the axes of said rolls lying in two parallel planes extending transverselyof the axis of said cutter and located upon opposite sides respectively of said cutter, means to spread the split portions of said tap apart and means lto adjust the-rolls of said series of rolls toward and away from each other.

6. A tap splitting machine having, in com-` 7. A tap splitting machine having, in com-- bination, a rotary cutter, a series 'of pairs of feed rolls adapted to feed a tap to said cutter, .the axes of hsaidV rolls lying in two parallel planes extendingtransversely ofthe axis of said cutter and located upon oppositev sides' respectively of said cutter, means to spread the split portions of said tap away from each other, a pair of frames in which one roll of each of said pairs Aof rolls is rotatably mounted, a p air of conical adjusting members interposed between said frames, means to adjust. l.said conical members toward each other whereby said frames may be moved apart and yielding means enga-ging said frames and adapted to move them towardeach other whereby said frames and the feed rolls mounted thereon may be adjusted toward and away from each other.'

8. A tapsplitting machine having, in 'c0mbination, a rotary cutter, a series of pairs of feedrolls adapted to feed a tap to said cutter and a pairof stationary spreader, plates located on opposite sides respectively of said cutter and eachprovided with a projection on its front edge adjacent the bottom thereof adapted to project between the split portions of said tap and ,spread them away from each other.

S). A tap splitting machine having, in combination, a rotary cutter, -a series of pairs of feed rolls adapted to feed a ta to said cutter, a pair of stationary spreac er plates located on opposite sides respectively of said cutter and upon opposite sides respectively ofa plane positioned between the rolls of each. of said pairs of rolls, each spreader plate being provided with a projection on its front edge adjacent the bottom thereof adapted to project between the split portions of saidtap and spread them Vaway from each iother, said spreader plates being located at the rear ofthe first pair of feed rolls, the

lower edges of said spreader. plates extending rearwardly from said rst pair of feed rolls and above the other pairs of feed rolls.

10. A tap splitting machine having combination, a rotary cutter, means to tap to said cutter, means to guide said tap relatively -to said eutterina plane -approx1- mately parallel to the face of said cutter and a spreader positioned ladjacent to said cutter and adaptedv to project betweenY the portions of'said tap which are split by said cutter and spread said portions apart.-

1l. A tapsplitting machine having, in.

combination, a rotary cutter, means to feed `a tap 'to said cutter, means to guide said tap relatively to mid cutter in a.l plane approxi mately parallel to the face of said cutter and a pair of stationary spreader plates located v upon Aopposite sides of said cutter and ada ted to spread the ortions of said tap whlc are split by saidJ cutter away from each other.

12. A tap splitting machine having, in

combination, ,a rotary cutter, the axis of which is horizontal, a series of pairsof ver-V tical feed rolls adapted to feed a tap to said cutter, and guide plates adapted to eng-age the opposite ends and one face 'of said tap and guide the same to thelirst of said pairs of feed rolls.

ln testimony whereof l have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WALTER J'. RANCOURT. Witnesses:

CHARLES S. GOQDING, FRANKLIN E. Low.

,in eeda. 

